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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A57291	The stage condemn'd, and the encouragement given to the immoralities and profaneness of the theatre, by the English schools, universities and pulpits, censur'd King Charles I Sundays mask and declaration for sports and pastimes on the Sabbath, largely related and animadverted upon : the arguments of all the authors that have writ in defence of the stage against Mr. Collier, consider'd, and the sense of the fathers, councils, antient philosophers and poets, and of the Greek and Roman States, and of the first Christian Emperours concerning drama, faithfully deliver'd : together with the censure of the English state and of the several antient and modern divines of the Church of England upon the stage, and remarks on diverse late plays : as also on those presented by the two universities to King Charles I.	Ridpath, George, d. 1726.	1698 (1698)	Wing R1468; ESTC R17141	128,520	226

if they please That the Council of Lateran held by the Authority of Pope Innocent the third in the year 1215. consisting of two Patriarchs seventy arch-Arch-Bishops four hundred twelve Bishops and eight hundred Abbots and Priors did forbid Clergymen to be present at Stage-Plays or to encourage Tumblers or Jesters So that if neither the Authority of Councils alone nor that of ● Pope and Council together be sufficient to 〈◊〉 the Paris Doctor of the Unlawfulness of Clergymens frequenting the Stage then I mus● make bold to tell him That he has made a Sacrifice of the Infallibility of the Church of Rome to the Chapel of the Devil the Playhouse as Mr. Mot●●ux ●as Sacrificed the Authority of the Protestant Church of France to the Pleasure and Profit he reaps from the Theatre and Drama What a horrid shame is it that Iuli●n the Apostate should have had more Regard to the Honour of his Pagan Priests than our present Patrons of the Stage have either to the Credit of Popish or Protestant Divines when as Zozamen tell us he ordered the Priests to be exhorted not to be seen in the Theatre on Pain of Disgrace AN ANSWER TO THE DEFENCE OF Dramatick Poetry CAP. VIII Church of England Divines against the STAGE I Come next to consider the Arguments of that Book call'd A Defence of Dramatick Poetry Or Review of Mr. Collier and must in the Threshold declare my Agreement with the Ingenious Author in his PREFACE That if the Sufferance of the Theatre be so fatally destructive to Morality Vertue and Religion as Mr. Collier has endeavoured to render it he has more Satyriz'd the Pulpit than the Stage and that this Universal Silence of the whole Clergy must conclude their neglect of their Christian Duty But I 〈◊〉 beg leave to inform him that he is mistaken 〈◊〉 he says Mr. Collier is the first Pulpit or 〈◊〉 Sermon upon that Text For tho' it be true 〈◊〉 the Church of England Clergy in general 〈◊〉 been guilty of a Culpable Silence as to 〈◊〉 Head since the Restoration of King Charl●● yet others have not Nor is Mr. Collier the 〈◊〉 Church of England Divine who since that 〈◊〉 hath attack'd the Stage from the Pulpit 〈◊〉 Wesley in a Reformation-Sermon preached in 〈◊〉 Iames's Church Westminster Feb. 13. and 〈◊〉 wards at St. Brides must be allowed to have 〈◊〉 the start of him Wherein he expresses himsel●● page 20 c. thus Our Infamous Cheatres seem to have do● more Mischief than Hobbs himself or our 〈◊〉 Atheistical Clubs to the Faith and Morals 〈◊〉 the Nation Moral Representations are own●● to be in their own Nature not only Innocent but ev'n useful as well as pleasant but what 〈◊〉 this to those which have no Morals or Morali●● at all in them and which are the most Immora● Things in the World which the more any good Man is acquainted with them the less he mus● still like them and at which Modest Heathen● would blush to be present If we ever hope for an entire Reformation of Manners even our Iails and our Theatres must have their shares With as much Reason may we exclaim against our Modern Plays and Interludes as did the ol● Zealous Fathers against the Pagan Spectacles and as justly rank these as they did the others among those Pomps and Vanities of this wicked World which our Baptism obliges us to ●●nounce and to abhor What Communion hath the Temple of God with Idols with those Abominable Mysteries of Iniquity which out do the old Fescennina of the Heathens the lewd 〈◊〉 of Baccus and the impious Feasts of 〈◊〉 and Priapus I know not how any Persons can profitably or indeed decently present themselves here before God's Holy Oracle who are ●●equently present at those Schools of Vice and Nurseries of Profaneness and Lewdness to unlearn there what they are here taught out of God's Holy Word Would you suffer your Friend or your Child to resort every day to a Pesthous or a place infected with any Contagious or Deadly Disease whence you had seen many Persons carried out dead before you If 〈◊〉 would do this who pretended to be in his Right Senses What excuse can be made for those who do worse and are themselves frequently present as well as suffer others to be so at that place which is so nearly allied to Hers which Solomon describes Whose House is the Way to Hell and her Gates lead down to the Chambers of Death How can such Persons pray every day Lead us not into Temptation when they themselves wilfully rush into the very Mouth of it 'T is true the Stage pretends to Reform Manners but let them tell us how many Converts they can Name by their means to Vertue and Religion during these last thirty or forty Years and we can give Numerous and sad Instances to the contrary even of a Brave and Virtuous Nation too generally deprav'd and corrupted to which there cannot perhaps be any one thing assigned which has more highly contributed than these unsufferable and abominable Representations the Authors of which though the publick should continue to take notice of them would either be forc'd so far to alter them that they would hardly be known or else they would fall of themselves If Men would but withdraw their Company from the●● as their presence there does actually encoura●● and support them To close the Head whereo●●am sorry there 's so much cause of insisting 〈◊〉 there are too many of whom we may witho●● breach of Charity believe that they 'd rath●● forsake the Church than the Theatre by 〈◊〉 being so much more frequently and delightfull● present at the latter than they are at the fo● mer. If Oaths if Blasphemy if perpetual Profa● tion of the Glorious Name of God and our Blesed Redeemer if making a Scoff and a Laught●● at his Holy Word and Institutions and I know not why I should not add his Ministers too which is the very Salt and almost Imprimatur to most of the Comedies of the present Age. If Filthiness and foolish Talking and profan● or immodest Iesting and insulting over the Miseries and excusing and representing and reco●mending the Vices of Mankind either by not p●nishing them at all or slightly punishing them or even making them prosperous and happy and teaching others first how to be wicked and then to defend or hide their Wickedness or at least to think Vertue ridiculous and unfashionable and Religion and Piety sit for none but old People Fools and Lunaticks If contempt of Superiors if false Notions of Honour if height of Lewdness and Pride and Revenge and even Murder be those Lessons which are daily taught at these publick Playhouses to the disgrace of our Age corruption of our M●rals and scandal and Odium of our Nation for the Truth of which we may appeal to all the Unprejudic'd and Virtuous part of Mankind Then we may further ask Whether these are ●it place for the Education of Youth

of a Divine of the Church of Rome viz. by Father Ca●●aro Divinity Professor at Paris as I find it annex'd to Mr. Motteuxes Play call'd Beauty in Distress Before I come directly to the Point it may not be improper to observe that considering the palpable Influence which the Stage hath had upon the Corruption of Manners so much complained of It seems no very suitable Imployment for one Divine of the Church of England to espouse the Defence of the Stage against another Nor is it very much for the Defendants Honour to make use of Arrows from a Popish Quiver for we have no Reason to think that a Popish Divine will be a Cordial Enemy to the Stage when the Worship of their Church does so much resemble the Pomp of the Theatre The Doctors first Argument is That the Scripture has no express and particular Precept against PLAYS Page 10. Which admitted to be True is an Argument of no Weight for Consequences naturally deduc'd from Scripture have the same Authority with the Text otherwise it could never be a Rule of Faith and Manners there being many thousands of things for which it serves as a Rule that it doth not particularly express So that the Doctors Argument would be equally servic●able to the Great Turk There 's no Express nor particular Precept against receiving Mohome● as a Prophet ergo But it is Naturally and Plainly infer'd from the Scriptures that because we are not to receive any other Doctrine than is there taught us therefore we are not to receive Mahomet as a Prophet By Consequences of like force and every whit as plain we shall find Stage-Plays condemned in Scripture I mean not only those that are guilty of Immorality Profaneness Blasphemy c. which the greatest Patrons of the Stage will not offer to defend but even Stage-Plays in general whose Business they will have it to be to recommend Vertue and discountenance Vice which I think will be very plain by the following Argument That which God hath appointed sufficient Means to Accomplish It is Unlawful for Men to appoint other Means to Accomplish But Go● hath appointed sufficient Means for Recommending Vertue and Discountenancing Vice without the STAGE Ergo It is Unlawful for Men to appoint the Stage for Recommending Vertue and Discountenancing Vice All t●e Controversie will lie about the first Proposition but I think there 's no Man who has a serious Impression of the infinite Wisdom Power and Goodness of God upon his Mind that will call it in Question seeing he must necessarily by so doing cast a Reflection upon all those Attributes and prefer the Wisdom Power and Goodness of Man to the Wisdom Power and Goodness of GOD. The second Proposition is clear from express Texts of Scripture The Apostle tells us That Magistracy is the Ordinance of God That Rulers are ordained by him to be a Terror to evil Works and to Praise those that do good And that they are the Ministers of God continually attending upon this very thing Rom. 13. 1 2 3 4 5. Whence it is evident That the Original End and Design of Magistracy is to Encourage Vertue and to Punish Vice And hence it is equally clear That seeing Commending is a Species of Reward and Lashing and Exposing a sort of Punishment the pretended Service of the Stage for those Ends is wholly needless God having sufficiently provided for that by appointing Magistrates This being so the Patrons of the Stage have no other Pretences left them but such as Mr. Collier enumerates briefly in his Introduction viz. That the Stage is useful to shew the uncertainty of Humane Greatness The sudden turns of Fate and the unhappy Conclusions of Violence and Injustice To expose the Singularities of Pride and Fancy To make Folly and Falshhood Contemptible And to bring every thing that is Ill under Infamy and Neglect But we are infinitely better provided for those Ends by the Word of GOD and the Ordinance of the Ministry We are taught That the former is able to make us wise unto Salvation I● given us by Inspiration of God for Doctrine Reproof Correction and Instruction in Righteousness that we may be perfect and throughly furnished unto all good Works 2 Timoth. 2. So that we have no need of the Instruction of the Stage for any of the Ends above● mentioned Are any of our Authors for the Theatre able to give such a Description of the Uncertainty of Humane Greatness and the Vanity of all Sublunary Things as Solomon hath given in his Ecclesiastes Can any of them give us more surprizing Instances of the sudden Turns of Fate and Revolutions of Providence than the Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah of Pharaoh and his Host Sennacherib and his Army and many others related in the Scriptures with reference not only to the Publick but to particular Persons Nay are we not i●finitely better accommodated with real Instance● of that Nature ev'n from profane History than we possibly can be from their forged ones on the Stage Can our Poets shew us more unhappy Conclusions of Violence and Injustice than those that attended Pharaoh and the other Tyrants that persecuted the People of God Are they able to give us Instances of the Singularity of Pride and Tyranny equal to those of that same Pharaoh who said Who is the Lord that I should obey Him Of Nebuchad●nezzer who ●or his Pride was turn'd a grazing with the Beasts of the Field Or of Herod who for his Fantastical Apparel and Pride was eat up of Worms Are they able to expose Folly and Falshhood to more Contempt than the Sacred Scripture does which tells us That a Poor and a Wise Child is better than an Old and a Foolish King Eccl. 4. 13. And that tho' the Bread of Deceit and Falshood be sweet to a Man yet afterward his Mouth shall be fill'd with Gravel Prov. 20. 17. Hath not God appointed the Ministry To teach all Nations to observe whatsoever he hath command●d Matth. 28. 19. To distinguish betwixt the Precious and the Vile Jer. 15. 19. To use sharpness according to the Power that God hath given them 2 Corinth 13. 8 9 10. To be instant in Season and out of Season To Reprove Reb●ke Exhort To Teach us to deny Ungodliness and worldly Lusts and to live Soberly Righteously and Godly in this present Evil World Tit. 2. 12. Thus the second Proposition is plainly proved That God hath provided sufficient Means for Recommending Vertue and Discountenancing Vice without the STAGE Ergo it is Unlawful to Appoint the Stage for Recommending Vertue and Discountenancing Vice It may perhaps be objected That by this Argument the Exhortations and Reproofs of Parents Masters and Neighbours are also prov'd to be needless To which the Answer is ready That those Duties are enjoyn'd by the Scriptures on Parents Masters and Neighbours therefore 't is the Ministers Duty to urge them and the Magistrates Duty to see them perform'd but no such thing can be said of

properly applied to them That not only thos● who commit such things are worthy of Death but they also that take Pleasure in those that do them He further tells the antient Romans That Stage-Plays polluted their Souls depraved their Manners provoked God and offended their Saviour dishonoured their Christian Profession and drew down Gods Judgments on their State then miserably wasted by the Goths and Vandals therefore he advises them eternally to abandon Theatres which would bring their Souls their Bodies their Church their State to utter Ruine This is so full a Proof of his being against Stag●-Plays in general and those too not polluted with Heathen Idolatries but when Church and State were both Christian that certainly our Doctors can never quote Salvian any more for their purpose I pass over their other Popish Saints and Schoolmen that they quote for their Opinion which I suppose will have as little weight with any true Protestant as if they had quoted St. Garnet or St. Coleman but shall take notice of an Argument page xxi that the Canons of Counc●ls brought against the Stage relate only to Scandalous Plays or Immodest Actors and here also the COUNCILS shall speak fo● themselves CAP. VII Councils against the STAGE THE Council of Eliberis in Spain held Anno Dom. 305. ordered those who lent their Garments to adorn Plays to be Excommunicated for three Years That no Stage-Player should be received into the Church unless they renounce their Art and if they returned to it again they should be cast out That no Believer should marry a Stage-Player on pain of Excommunication The Council of Arles held at Narbon in France about the Year of our Lord 314. in the Time of Constantine the Great ordered That all Stage-Players should be Excommunicated so long as they continued to Act The Council of Arles in that same Kingdom held Anno 326. Enacted the like The Council of Laodicea in Phrygia Pacatiania held about 364. where most of the Bis●ops of Asia were present Enacted That no Clergy-man should be present at any Stage-Play The Council of Hippo held An. 393. and the Council of Carthage in Africa held An. 399. whereof St. ●ustin was a Member forbad the Clergy and Laity the use of Stage-Plays but ordered them to be re-admit●ed into the Church upon Repentance The Council of Carthage held An. 401. Enacted That those who were newly Baptized or Converted should abstain from Stage-Plays and that those who upon any solemn Festival omitted the Ass●mbly of the Church and resorted to Stage Plays should be Excommunicated The Council of Africa held An. 408. decreed That Reconciliation with the Church should not be denied to Stage-Players and Common-Actors in case of Repentance and abandoning their Professions That Stage-Plays are against the Comm●ndments of God And that Stage-Players should not be admitted as Evidences against any Person but in their proper Causes The Council of Carthage held An. 419. declared all Stage-Players to be infamous Persons and uncapable of bearing Evidence The Council of Constantinople held An. 680. and reputed both by Protestants and Papists to ●e O●cumenical ordered Clergymen that frequented Stage-Plays to be depriv'd and Laymen to be Excommunicated The ●d Council of Nice held about 787. and commonly reputed the 7th Oecumenical Council forbids Stage-Plays as being accursed by the Prophet Isaiah Cap. 5. v. 11 12. And forbid by the Apostle 1 Cor. 10. 31. The Synod of Tours held in the time of Char●emain An. 813. forbad to frequent Stage-Plays and ordered them to teach others to avoid them The second Synod of Cabilon held in the sa●● Year forbad them in like manner The Council of Mentz and Rheimns held under that same Emperor did in the same manner fo●bid Stage-Plays to the Clergy The Council of Cologn held An. 1549. forbids Comedies to be Acted in Nunneries for though they consisted of Sacred and Pious Subjects they can notwithstanding leave little good but much hurt in the Minds of holy Virgins who behold and admire the External Gestures therefore they forbad the Acting of Comedies in Monastries or that Virgins should be Spectators of them The Council of Milan held An. 1560. in the Chapter concerning the Stage and the Dice admonishes Princes to banish out of their Teritories all Stage-Players Tumblers Jugglers and Jesters and to punish such Publick Houses as entertain them Thus we find Synods Antient and Modern and some of them during the very Darkness of Popery expresly condemning the Stage and that of the Council of Cologn is very remarkable which forbids Virgins the seeing of Comedies tho' the Subject be Sacred and Pious because of the bad Impressions which the External Gesture might leave upon their Minds Nay the very Council of Trent declared so far against Stage-Plays as to forbid them to the Clergy Then what a shame is it that the Church of England should not only be so remiss in declaring against the Stage but that any of her Clergy should appear to defend it as that Dr. does who sent the Letter to M. Motteux to prefix to his Beauty in Distress And much more that any of them should be Authors to write Plays for the Stage as Iasper Main and others of a latter date as the Author of the Innocent Impostors c. whom out of Respect I forbear to Name To these Antient and Modern Councils I shall add that of the Protestant Church of France held at Rochel An. 1571. Where this Canon was unanimously agreed upon viz. All Congregations shall be admonished by their Ministers seriously to Reprehend and Suppress all Dances Mummeries and Enterludes and it shall not be lawful for any Christians to act or be present at any Comedies Tragedies Plays Enterludes or any other such Sports either in publick or private considering that they have always been opposed condemned and suppresse● in and by the Church as bringing along with them the Corruption of good Manners This methinks ought to have more weight with M. Motteu● and his Church of England Divine than the Letter of a Popish Doctor of Paris I shall insist no further on the Defence of the Stage by the Prefacer to Beauty in Distress those I have already touch'd being his principal Arguments As for his Hints of other things being condemned by those Fathers and Councils which are now generally held to be Innocent they are me●r trifles No Protestant ever held that either Men or Councils were Infallible But the Arguments here adduced by those Fathers and Councils against the Stage being founded upon general Scripture Rules ought to direct us in our Faith and Practice as to this Matter Yet seeing our Parisian Doctor thinks it a mighty Argument for the Stage That Bishops Cardinals and Nuncios make no Scruple to be present at Plays though the same hath been forbid by so many Councils Mr. Motteux or his Church of England Divine may acquaint him

Stories or Poems There 's none of them let their Disposition be never so good but are in danger of being corrupted by this Method and I should look on it as next akin to a Miracle if there were any Virgin or Matron so Religiously Chast as not to have their Lusts inflamed almost to madness by Reading such kind of Books and Poems In this Case even the Heathen Lecher Ovid who is much more ingenuous than our pretended Christian Poets gives Judgment against his own Amorous POEMS and those of Tibullus c. Eloquar in vitus teneros ne tange Poetas Summon●o dot●s impias esse meas Callimachum ●ugito non est inimicus amori Et cum Callimacho tu quoque Coe Noces Carmina quis potuit tuto legisse Tibulli Vel tita cujus opus Cynthea sola suit Quis potuit lecto durus discedere Gallo Et mea nescio quid carmina tale sonant De Remedio amoris lib. 3. p. 230. It will appear plain from the very Nature and Design of Christian Schools That such things ought not to be taught in them The end of all such Schools is to teach Wisdom and Vertue that we may know God and our selves and how to Worship God aright whereas the quite contrary is taught by those Authors Homer Hesiod Pindar Aristophanes Virgil Horace and the rest of those Heathen Authors arriv'd to that height of Impiety and Madness that they feign'd such lewd things to be acted by their Gods as a modest Man cannot but be ashamed to reh●arse before Youth for they represent their Gods and Goddesses to be such as no honest or well-governed Common-wealth would have admitted them for Citizens so that Palingenius writes truly of them In c●elo est Meretrix in coelo est turpis adulter Lib. I. There 's no doubt but the Heathen Poets were influenced by Satan to feign such Monstrous and Horrid Things concerning their Deities that they might thereby promote and Authorize Whoredom and Uncleanness among Men and add Fewel to the Flames of Corrupt Nature Certainly those Fables in Ovid's Metamorphosis concerning the Amous nay Rapes of the Gods and others cannot leave any Chast Impressions upon the Minds of Youth What a fulsom Expression is that of Virgil Aneid 7. Mista Deo Mulier The danger of teaching such things to Youth was seen by the very Heathen Philosophers And therefore Plato says That those fabulous Stories of the Poets were not to be receiv'd into a City as if the Gods wag'd War and form'd Ambushes against one another c. whether they be taken in an Allegorical Sense or not For Children says he cannot distinguish betwixt what is spoke figuratively or otherwise and such Opinions as they drink in when they are young they can hardly ever lay aside To feign that God who is altogether Good is the Cause of Evil is an Error that ought to be refuted and therefore the Poets should be compelled to write and speak things that are honest Tha● same Author says in Theage I know not what any Man in his Right Wits ought to be more solicitous about than how to have his Son made as good as possible and therefore he advises that care be taken that Nurses don't entertain them with old Wives Fables lest they be corrupted with Madness and Folly from their very Infancy Seeing those poor Heathens who had nothin● but the Light of Nature to direct them coul● give such excellent Precepts what a shame 〈◊〉 it for Christian Schoolmasters to spend more tim● in teaching their Youth who Iupiter Vulca● Neptune and Saturn were than who Iesus Chris● is and to teach them those Lascivious Heathe● Po●ts in direct Opposition to the Seventh Co●●mand St. Augustine in his Book of Con●ession 〈◊〉 out Oh that when I was a young Man I ha●● been instructed in profitable Books Whilst I w●● a Youth at School I heard them talk of Iupit●● darting Thunder and committing Adultery at t●● same time The Jews were commanded to teach the La●● of God to their Children diligently to talk 〈◊〉 them when they sat in their Houses when th●● walked by the way when they lay down an● when they rose up to write them upon the Pos● of their Houses and on their Gates Deut. 6. 6 7 ● The Roy●l Prophet David taught them Th● young Men were to purifie their way by takin● heed thereunto according to the Word of Go● Psal. 119. 9. And the wise King Solomon co●●manded Children to be trained up in the Way t●● they should go and when they were old they wo●● not depart from it Prov. 22. 6. The Apostle 〈◊〉 joyns that our Children should be brought up 〈◊〉 the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord Eph. 6 And commands Timothy to avoid Profane and 〈◊〉 Wives Fables 1 Tim. 4. 7. The only Objection of any weight that can 〈◊〉 raised against this is That in those Heathen Poe● there are abundance of excellent Moral Sentenc● and that Youth learn the Purity of the Lati●● Tongue from them To which it may be answer● That put them all together they come infinite● short of those Moral Instructions that are to be found in the Proverbs of Solomon and the Ecclesiastes that its evident what Moral Sayings of worth any of those Heathen Authors have they borrow'd them from Moses and others of the divinely inspired Writers and we may with more safety and purity drink from the same Founta●ns than from their polluted Streams And as for the purity of the Latine Tongue it may as well be learnt from others as from the Poets The Roman Histories are excellent for that end and if their Poets were purg'd from their Obscenities c. and so put into the Hands of Youth there could be nothing to object against ' em Nor are there wanting excellent Latine Poems by Christian Authors which might be equally serviceable for instructing our Youth in the purity of the Latine Tongue and inspring them also with true Christian Sentiments such as the famous Antient Poems of Tertullian Arator Apollinaris Nazianzen Prudentius Prosper and other Christian Worthies and the later ones of Du Bartas Beza Scaliger Buchanan Heinsius c. That a Reform of the Schools in this Point hath been so long neglected reflects Shame upon the Church who ought to have chiefly concerned themselves in it and is one main Reason why so many Persons of good parts have applied themselves to write for the Stage and that too with more Wantonness and Latitude than most of the Hea●hen Poets ever dar'd to allow themselves and the Corruption hath spread so far as to in●ect our Universities who tho' formerly they condemned the Stage are now become its Admirers and to the Scandal of the Nation obscene Poems are writ at their Publick Acts. CAP. V. An Answer to M. Motteuxes Defence of the STAGE I Come next to consider what is offer'd in Defence of the Stage by a Divine of the Church of England from the Authority